May 19-20, 2018: “Revel in the White City” virtual simulation at MSI (Chicago)

To mark the 125th anniversary of the 1893 World’s Fair, the Museum of Science and Industry (MSI) in Chicago is hosting “Revel in the White City” on May 19 and 20, 2018. Visitors will experience the Columbian Exposition grounds and buildings as a virtual computer simulation, presented by Dr. Lisa M. Snyder, of UCLA’s Institute for Digital Research and Education, and Tim Samuelson, cultural historian for the City of Chicago.

Two decades ago, Snyder and the UCLA Urban Simulation Team began a project to reconstruct the Columbian Exposition using computer code and display screens rather than steel and staff. Over the years, they have added additional areas and buildings of the fairgrounds.

Snyder has presented the team’s breathtaking images of the virtual White City at the MSI several times in the past few years. The live presentations offer a real-time simulation, allowing viewers to enter an immersive, full-color, 3-D virtual space and walk through the fairgrounds, sail along the Lagoon and Grand Basin, fly over of Court of Honor, and ride the Ferris Wheel above the Midway Plaisance. While sitting in the MSI, you can tour the exact same location in 1893, when the building served as the Palace of Fine Arts. Some sample (non-interactive) videos are available to view through the UCLA website.

Unless you own a time machine, this is one of the most detailed and visually spectacular ways to experience the great World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893.

The presentations take place at 1 pm on Saturday, May 19, and Sunday, May 20, in the West Pavilion of the Museum. Tickets are $25 (in addition to museum entry) for the general public, or $20 for MSI members.